Podcast Transcript One of the biggest changes to humanity over the last 100 years has been the increase in life expectancies. One of the biggest reasons for the increase in life spans has been the development and use of antibiotics. Yet, the development of antibiotics was often accidental, and now they have become so ubiquitous …
Well, I managed to get my passport submitted and put in the queue. Going to the consulate was like my previous trips to US Embassies, which is to say it was a very weird experience. First, the whole “appointment” thing was a total farce. It turns out the system ended up making my appointment at …
Podcast Transcript In the early 12th century, a military monastic order developed in the Middle East with the express intent of protecting Christian pilgrims traveling to the Holy Land. Despite its rather modest mission statement, over the next 200 years, this organization became one of the most powerful entities throughout the Middle East and Europe. …
Podcast Transcript Throughout the Second World War, one of the world’s most popular musicians was the American big band leader Glenn Miller. He had a string of hits over a very short period of time, and his music is so synonymous with that period that it can be heard in almost every movie and documentary …
Podcast Transcript On December 10, 1896, the Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel passed away. In his will, he gifted most of his estate for the creation of a prize that rewarded people for excellence in various forms of human endeavor. Over a hundred years later, the prize he created is one of the most prestigious awards …
Podcast Transcript In 1947, India and Pakistan became independent countries after almost 200 years of British colonial rule. However, this wasn’t just a case of a former colony becoming independent. It was a single colony which was partitioned into two separate countries. That partition had wide-ranging implications, many of which are still being felt today. …
In his 1979 book Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams tells of an alien race that builds a computer to answer the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything. The computer took 7.5 million years to come up with the answer. They could have saved a lot of time and money if they …
Podcast Transcript If aliens were to look at the Earth through a telescope from far away and analyze our atmosphere, they would find that the dominant element is nitrogen. Nitrogen makes up 78% of our atmosphere, and it’s all around us. However, it behaves very differently than the other common elements around us. Nitrogen is …
Podcast Transcript In the year 490 BC, one of the most pivotal battles in world history took place. Just north of the City of Athens, Persian and Greek forces clashed in what was to be the first Persian attempt to invade Greece. Despite being seriously outnumbered, the Greeks managed to win a decisive victory that …